Ford Maddox Ford, a somewhat lesser known member of the Paris 1920s literary scene, was born December 17, 1873 in Surrey England. Although in his lifetime he wrote scores of books he is relatively unknown today. His novels included “the Good Soldier”, Parade’s End and “No More Parades”.

Part of the Lost Generation, Ford played the role to the hilt and is typically highlighted in a Hemingway biography as a lothario. Ford was the founder of the literary journal “The Transatlantic Review” where at one time Ernest Hemingway served as editor. Ford was close friends with Ezra Pound and a collaborator on two books with Joseph Conrad. Interestingly, Ford, who you might’ve guessed changed his name, was the model for Braddocks in “The Sun Also Rises”. In 1938 while at Olivet College, where he ended his writing career, Ford invited Pound to accept a teaching position on the faculty. It is impossible to speculate what would have happened if Pound had said yes. For sure the sleepy town would’ve never been the same.